Many of you will be familiar with Mesa Power as the NAFTA case that concerns the local content requirements in Ontario's feed-in-tariff (FIT) programme for renewably generated electricity, which were found to violate WTO rules in the recent Canada-Renewable Energy rulings. The NAFTA claim raises far broader issues of the way in which Ontario administered the program, and the way politicians and officials decided who got what access to the market more generally, including issues of National and MFN and Fair and Equitable Treatment.
There is a public viewing of the hearing by closed circuit TV in Toronto, where it will occur the last week of this month. For those who are interested, here is the link. It is necessary to register with the Permanent Court of Arbitration, by the end of the day October 22 Hague time.http://www.pca-cpa.org/showpage.asp?pag_id=1579.
It is also envisaged that the recording of the hearing will eventually be webcast.
(As some of you who read the Mesa amicus brief in Canada-Renewable Energy posted to the www.worldtradelaw.net site a while ago will be aware, I have been doing some work with the counsel for the investor in this case, Appleton & Associates).
